Keeping the wight off - weighed in at 180 yesterday, a sight better then 240 back in 2003.

Just loaded the top-secret eval version of Project David from SpecOps Labs in the Philippines. This thing is going to scare the shit out of Microsoft - it even had me looking over my shoulders. To start with, it runs Office XP Professional at least 60% faster then when I'm booted into XP itself. I mean, it was like BAM! It's up. There wasn't a single app I tried - IE 6.0, Powerpoint, Photoshop and games that the thing didn't run incredibly well. Actually, I wouldn't mind being able to throttle it back a bit. What amazed me more then anything was it's ability to run Microsoft Windows Server backoffice stuff like MS SQL Server. I'm convinced that their "Alpha" code designation means you can't print with it - cause that and USB devices were the only things I couldn't get working. It still needs some serious polishing - however, they do deliver on the ability to simply insert any Windows app CD, install and run it right off the Linux desktop. Much easier to use then straight-up Wine (there is some Wine in it) and much better integrated then the other Win on Lin offerings.

I'll be in Boston at Linuxworld hanging around the Linuxcare (Levanta) booth. I'd welcome the opportunity to see old friends if you're at the show. We'll even be running a Sputnik AP in the booth - levanta levanta... ;)

Lastly, thinking a lot about the LSB lately. I'd love to hear your opinions on 2.0, the upcoming 3.0 and ways the LSB could be more effective. I'm just diving into it - so feel free to educate me (kindly please).

In other news, I've lost 60 lbs since November 1st! No fad diet, no Atkins, no pills. Just cut out the soda, stopped eating like a pig - no junk food... and gym for an hour every day (keeping the heart rate at 150).

Bought a Powerbook 17 - very cool machine. When it arrived (fresh off the boat from Taiwan) I powered it up... DEAD PIXELS ALL OVER THE SCREEN. I was super surprised, as I've ordered no-name Intel notebooks from seriously questionable suppliers (in the past) and have NEVER had a screen with even a single dead pixel. While I have to hand it to Apple for designing a super cool notebook, I'm thowing this one back and hoping they'll send me a unit that works!

I find it interesting that the management of this company have decided it best to conceal their identities. I wonder if these people have noticed?

Want to set up your own network of WiFI Hot Spots? Sputnik Claus has arrived. Check out this incredible deal at Sputnik. You can be your own Wireless ISP - or set up a network of secure, managed access points at your office(s). It's Cisco class performance at Wal-Mart prices. (please don't quote me) :)

Death:
A good friend of mine passed away recently. He wrote the following note which was read at his memorial last Thursday.

"I don't believe in the immortal soul, but I do think that we are part Life itself, all of the plants and animals - maybe even the earth and sky. We are part of something greater than ourselves and when we return to that when we die. I will stop being an individual but I will always have been a part of the whole. I'm good with that although the unknown is more than a little scary."

RIP Dennis Dodd...

Will Code for Equity:At Sputnik we're looking for some folks to help us polish up a very cool wireless product. We did a limited release, which taught us some harsh lessons. We would like to find some great coders who are local to the San Francisco area to help us get the product to general availability. Experience with embedded Linux, and writing installers or CD based (and booted) systems would be a big plus. C, Perl - the usual. We can't pay much, but we can offer a decent bucket of early shares. Easy to reach office South of Market in San Francisco. Contact dladuke @ sputnik dot com if your crazy enough to take the plunge!

rasmus, a famous dane and PHP dignitary will be speaking tomorrow night at the Bay Area Linux Users Group. This is a good opportunity to hear an excellent speaker, take in the sights of San Francisco's Chinatown and hang with other Linux enthusiasts. Details at the BALUG website.

ATTENTION If you (or your employer) are working on BREW (mobile) games and applications which are ready for release, then I'd like to talk to your business development VP. I have some immediate revenue opportunities.

Almost a year since my last update. Time fly's when you're having fun I suppose. Too much going on for a complete review but here are some highlights, past and present.

Hot New Projects

Does your company have a product that you want sold or marketed in China, Korea or India? Do you want offshore development done but are concerned about code leakage or effectively managing development? Are you looking for a offshore distributor, sales agent, or intelligence on Asian markets? Then take a look at Eastern Stake Inc. These guys have their act together like no one I have ever worked with before.

Another exceptionally cool outfit I am involved with is Anuvu Inc. Anuvu is a company that has developed next generation fuel cell technology that will absolutely change the world. Their demo completely blew me away - and I am hard to impress! I can't say much more then that - but I am very excited to be working with these guys.

Linuxworld Expo in Jan 03

I'll be there and for the first time in five years I won't be representing Linuxcare. As of mid-November, I am no longer affiliated with Linuxcare in any capacity whatsoever (board member, employee or stakeholder). I wish the company luck and good fortune - we parted on the best of terms. To wit - I have joined the Linuxcare Alumni mailing list! The conference promises to be a good one - IDG has an excellent event planned. While I am rather booked that week with customer, community and show related responsibilities, I can be found in and out of the AMD booth or at my email address above. While this show looks to be really good in terms of general speakers and other distractions, the Australia National Linux Conference really looks like the place to be for those of us who value great technical sessions.

Amtrak

Being somewhat of a connected hobo I've managed to map out and upload all the WiFI hotspots along major rail routes from Houston (Texas), New Mexico, Arizona, California, Oregon and Washington. If January plans hold true I'll map the northern road to Chicago, onward to NYC. Then on return, I'll map the overland road back to California. I've always enjoyed walking along the tracks, jungling up with friends both old and new. Now, when I run across some interesting hobo art I can submit the photos in real time!

Sputnik

Sputnik has been going very well. Aside from slipping ship dates on the code, the WiFI space seems to be seeing some really interesting activity. Look for Sputnik to put up a improved version of the community gateway code soon. We expect to have the full version of the software (AP and back end Central Control) up for sale on the site soon. (ie. sometime 1st quarter) In any event - the reviews on our technology demonstrations have been overwhelmingly positive and I am itching to convert that momentum and energy to sales. Please think of us if you are going to do any large WiFI work. We scale way beyond anything currently available.

Linuxworld in NYC was a really good time. The IDG
event
people did an excellent job at putting together a great
show in tough times. Not too many Linux companies, but it
was fun to reconnect with people. My past associates from
Linuxcare, Avery, Brad and Art O. where there mixing it up
with partners and customers. Caldera had a nice booth,
and it was great seeing Ransom and Benoy. Bumped into many
quality Turbolinux folk such as Michael Jennings, Pete
Beckman, Ly Pham and John Hayes. Ran into Dirk Hohndel,
formerly of SuSE and now with Intel in Oregon.
Participated in the Golden Penguin Bowl with Rasmus, Jeremy
(who despite his awesome knowledge of trivia seems to get
saddled with trivia-deadwood like myself- he has never won
a Golden Penguin and has been trying for years) and other
cool folks. I'm no trivia master but this time we made a
very respectable attempt to win, we only lost points once,
and the final score was close. I really wanted to spend
more time then I had with everyone. I regret I wasn't able
to hook up with Dan York, Marc Torres or Domonique Russo.
Toward the end of my stay, many unexpected meetings
consumed the bulk of available time. The mobile CDPD based
802.11 access point was a hit, although coverage was
limited to major cities. (I considered hacking Rail-Fone,
but it seemed like Amtrak needed the money more then I
needed the slow link)

Amtrak

The trip from San Francisco to New York's Penn Station
on
Amtrak takes about four days. The total ticket price was a
little over the top, $3200.00. On the other hand, I saw a
lot of the country first hand at ground level. San
Francisco to Chicago, Chicago to NYC, NYC back to Chicago,
Chicago to Seattle and Seattle to San Francisco. That's
nine days on the train in a small but comfortable room,
three good meals and snacks, and transportation. It's not
inexpensive, but I've spent more on crap that resulted in
less pleasant memories. It was nice to arrive downtown,
less then a 5-minute cab ride from the hotel. When you
weigh the cab ride to and from JFK against four days on a
train, in many respects the train wins. About the only
complaint I have is the condition of the coaches, clearly
Amtrak is suffering from budget issues. The California
Zephyr and the Empire Builder were a little like public
housing on wheels- and could use some improvements. All
things considered, I highly recommend giving it a try.

New York City

NYC was of course, fab as always. Had dinner at Union
Square with some old friends from MSN financial and
Bloomberg, famous attorneys and top Wall Street guys. I
ordered the "Fried Chicken," simply because I wondered what
fried chicken and potatoes at $35.00 a plate would taste
like. Colonel Sanders has nothing to worry about, nothing
beats the Original Recipe. I never stay as long as I
should...